


To Our Worlds

by Finally_Home



Category: NCT (Band)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Sword Art Online Fusion, Alternate Universe - Video Game World, F/M, Fluff, Humor, Isekai, SAO was the best way i could explain it i'm sorry, inspired by a dream, no beta we die like men, sort of like 无限流
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-22
Updated: 2021-02-15
Packaged: 2021-03-13 22:27:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 11,327
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28910847
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Finally_Home/pseuds/Finally_Home
Summary: Dear Miss Mihyun Yoo,Congratulations! You have been chosen to take part in the alternate-reality game MultiExperience developed by Insomnia Games. This is an honor bestowed to few, and we hope you will enjoy the experience.To Mihyun, Jaehyun is NCT, a world-famous celebrity, but to Jaehyun, they're just normal university students. Together, they must struggle through five fantastical worlds in order to win the game and return to their normal lives.- inspired by 无限流 chinese webnovels and a dream i had a while back- characters in tags are listed in general order of appearance (yes, ot23 will all make an appearance)- tags and ratings are susceptible to change but i think it will be mostly PG- nothing will be beta-ed because i suck like that LOL- updates will be spontaneous and few-and-far-between
Relationships: Jung Yoonoh | Jaehyun/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 7





	1. One.

Her head hurts. Actually, everything hurts, like she’d just gotten beat up, even though she’d never actually gotten beat up before. She takes a deep breath and struggles to a sitting position, arm muscles screaming in protest. 

The first thing she notices is that she is no longer in her room. Instead of white-painted drywall, the walls of this room are made of dark panels of wood, with ink paintings of flowers hanging on the back wall. It’s a dim room, lit only with candles and oil lamps, and the bed set against a papered window reminds her of an ancient drama.

It might as well be, considering the clothes she’s wearing. The pink silk feels cool against her skin, and though she can’t tell which country it’s from, the fact is that it’s a very beautiful outfit. She can only imagine how beautiful it makes her look.

Fortunately, she has enough sense to return to the question at hand—what the literal fuck? Where is she? Who took her here? Did someone change her into this outfit? Who, what, when, where, why, how? In conclusion, what the  _ fuck _ ?

That’s when she notices the scroll sitting beside her hand. Actually, she wouldn’t have noticed at all if she hadn’t tried to stand up and moved her hand on top of the paper. Great observation skills, that. 

_ Dear Miss Mihyun Yoo _ , the scroll reads in swirly letters. They know her name? Mihyun closes her eyes with a panicked groan. Oh, she’s definitely been kidnapped. Her parents have somehow ran up a huge debt with the Mafia which decided to kidnap her and torture her in return for her parents’ money. Oh no, oh no, she’s going to die.

On second thought, though, what kind of Mafia would put their victim in a nice room with a bed and a pretty outfit? The logical side of Mihyun’s brain takes over, and she goes back to reading the scroll.

_ Dear Miss Mihyun Yoo, _

_ Congratulations! You have been chosen to take part in the alternate-reality game MultiExperience developed by Insomnia Games. This is an honor bestowed to few, and we hope you will enjoy the experience. _

_ Insomnia Games started in 2013 as an indie game company. Though we did not garner much attention at first, we were blessed to have a brilliant scientist on our team. She learned of a rip in the fabric of spacetime which allowed realities to merge, and with her help, our company learned to harness this power and instill it into our games. _

_ MultiExperience is the first public game that Insomnia Games has ever released. It welcomes players from across more than ten dimensions, with five game levels that all players must traverse, with or without allies. Levels and participants are chosen randomly, and after the required levels have been completed, players will be released back into their own world with no consequences. _

_ But be careful! Due to the unstable nature of non-Minkowskian spacetime, players who die in-game will not be able to revive. However, levels are easy, and though Insomnia Games takes no responsibility for any deaths or injuries, we do not foresee many in the first place. _

_ Good luck, and enjoy the MultiExperience! _

_ Signed, Insomnia Games Crew _

_ *** _

Tutorial:  **Welcome to MultiExperience!**

Welcome, Player#544763! I have no doubt that you must be overwhelmed right now, so let me help you through the game basics!

First, let me introduce myself. I am Neo, the tutorial master. You can call on me at any time during the first level by swiping your hand up in the air while calling my name. Try it out!

[ACTION: Summon Neo]

[ACTION: Open Menu]

This is your Game Menu, an AR-type screen that can be summoned at any time during the game by swiping your hand up in the air while saying "Menu". From the Game Menu, you can access your profile and stats, your inventory, information about the current level, and current objectives. You can also message your contacts by tapping on the "Contacts" tab.

You don't have any contacts right now, but when you want to add one, simply tap on the "Add Contact" button. From there, you will see a list of players within a 500m radius, and all you need to do is click someone's name to send a Contact Request.

Change tabs by swiping left or right, or simply press on another tab. Let's go to your inventory!

[ACTION: Inventory]

This is your inventory. Oh no, it's empty! That won't do. Why don't I start you off with a few items?

Item Added: HEALING POTION (NORMAL) X5

Item Description: Recovers some HP.

Item Added: FRESHLY-BAKED BREAD x5

Item Description: Recovers full HP.

Item Added: APPLE x5

Item Description: Recovers some Stamina.

That should be good. Of course, your inventory can hold much more than simple healing items. As you explore each level, you will find it useful to place items into your inventory in order to keep them safe. Later on, you will also be able to purchase weapons and other useful items; these will also be stored in your inventory.

Let's go to your profile!

[ACTION: Profile]

This is your profile. It contains your personal information such as name, age, height, etc. It also contains your character level, amount of coins, and stats. Tap on each one to learn more!

Level: 1

Coins: 100G, 0S, 0B

HP: 1000/1000

Stamina: 1000/1000

Strength: 200

Intelligence: 200

Dexterity: 200

Perception: 200

As you proceed through each level, you will gain experience points (which are hidden from players for technical reasons!) and level up, thus gaining more HP and stamina. Each time you level up, you can choose to increase one of your stats. You can also buy stat-increasing potions later.

Oh, I almost forgot!

EDIT NAME?

Since this is a game, after all, you may not want to use your real name as your player name. The system has kindly given you one chance to change your name; whether or not you do is up to you. Choose wisely, as whatever name you choose will be your player name for the rest of the game.

Your name is now Mimi#544763.

You may be wondering why we kept the numbers after your name. Well, since this game includes players from more than ten universes, there are bound to be repeat names, and the system needs some way to identify each...

Ahem, anyway. Let's move on.

[ACTION: Level/Objectives]

This is the "Current Level & Objectives" tab. Here, you'll find information about the level that you're in, as well as your current objectives as you proceed through the game. 

Be careful, though: you only know as much as you find out. As you proceed to higher levels, the difficulty increases as well, and it may be harder to find information. 

[ACTION: Close Menu]

Be careful when pulling up the Game Menu; the game does not pause, and though no NPC will question you, you may be distracted enough to miss certain details or clues. That's why we've given you an inventory shortcut.

[ACTION: Open Shortcut]

This leather pouch on your waist is your inventory shortcut. It can store up to ten items--the first ten items in your inventory--and you can access any one of these items by opening the pouch and saying the item title.

I'll give you an example: if you were badly-injured during a battle, you can open the pouch and say, "Healing Potion!" Then, a Healing Potion will appear in the air in front of you. To make this fair for all players, only the player who summoned the item may interact with it while it is in the air. If you have different types of Healing Potions, you will need to specify which type you want; otherwise, the system will choose the first item that fits the general description.

[ACTION: Close Shortcut]

I think that's all you need to know for now. Once the game starts, I'll be able to introduce more game mechanics to you. I'll also be around for the entirety of the first level, so feel free to ask for help at any time! The game will pause when you call on me (though I can't answer any questions about the level itself!).

Remember, to call me, swipe up in the air while saying my name. Do you remember my name?

A: TRINITY

B: MORPHEUS

C: NEO

D: ZION

That's right, I'm Neo!

It was very nice to meet you, Mimi#544763. You'll be entering the first level now. Good luck!

_ *** _

_Your first level is:_ **_Like Flower, Like Jade_**

_ As a wrongly-disgraced concubine, you have been imprisoned in a room by yourself. Not even maids are allowed to be around you. It is a miracle that you have survived months in what is essentially solitary confinement, especially when everyone else seems to fear you greatly. _

_ Tomorrow, however, you will be taken to court for a crime that you did not commit. The emperor still holds you in some regard, which is the only reason you have not yet died. What did you do? And what can you say in order to prove your innocence? _

_ Notice: As this is your first level, you will have two allies in this game. You will not know who they are, nor will they know you. Work together to free yourself and escape. _

The only thought that Mihyun has after reading the information is  _ what the fuck _ . The words scroll across her brain in big block letters, and she wants to lie back down on the ground and pass out. Nothing makes any sense—rip in spacetime? if you die here you can’t revive? levels?—and she pinches herself, wishing badly for this to all be a nightmare.

Pain lingers across her arm. The odd Asian room still stands. Mihyun sighs and struggles to her feet, taking a good look around. Guess it’s not a dream after all, and if it’s not a dream, then she has to escape from this room, without dying, with the help of two allies.

She could just kick the door down. The thought occurs to her in a flash of genius, but when she checks the seemingly-flimsy doors, they’re cold to the touch, almost burning her skin. After a pause, she quickly touches the other walls. They, too, are bitingly-cold, made of metal instead of wood.

That plan’s out of the question, then. But other than kicking down the door, Mihyun has no other plan. There’s nothing in the room except for a bed, a few candles and oil lamps, a low table with a plate of cakes, and the ink paintings hanging on the walls. There’s definitely nothing out-of-place about the bed—she carefully checks under the covers and pillows—and the paintings seem to just be large pieces of fabric, so she turns her attention to the cakes instead.

Truth be told, she is a bit hungry. Dimension-hopping must have taken a lot of energy out of her, even though she doesn’t remember how she got here. As she reaches out to take one of the cakes, however, she picks up on a slightly bitter smell. It’s not anything familiar, doesn’t smell like chemicals, but carefully, using a handkerchief beside the plate, Mihyun picks up a cake.

It’s small, round, wrapped in golden dough with a pretty flower pattern on top. Chrysanthemums, if she remembers her flowers correctly. It looks a little bit like a mooncake, and utterly delicious. Mihyun swallows, trying to stop herself from salivating, and examines the cake more closely.

At first, nothing seems inherently wrong, but the bitter smell still hangs in the air, and she’s pretty sure she sees a faint purplish tone to the glaze on the dough. Of course, it could be her imagination, but given that she only has one precious life, Mihyun decides not to risk it.

Carefully, she puts the cake into her inventory using the pouch shortcut. At first, it doesn’t seem like the cake will fit, but then it disappears in a flash of blue light. When Mihyun peers into the pouch, a glowing screen pops up. POISONED CAKE, it reads. TASTY, IF YOU CAN GET PAST THE TASTE OF MERCURY. 

“Handkerchief too?” she can’t help exclaiming out loud. Sure enough, beside the small box containing the cake, there’s an image of a handkerchief—TAINTED HANDKERCHIEF: MAYBE IT’S POISONED TOO, OR MAYBE IT’S NOT. CARE TO TRY?

Now that she’s gone through the basic tutorial, Mihyun spends a long time examining the room, flipping over the paintings and patting down the bed, looking for anything that might be helpful to helping her escape, but the only object that comes up is a set of silver acupuncture needles. USED TO RELIEVE PAIN, the description says. YOU WON’T FIND BLOOD ON THEM.

It’s not like she doesn’t know how they work. She’s seen the folk doctors in Chinatown carefully slide them into her mother’s waist at just the right pressure points. Thinking of her parents back home makes Mihyun take in a sharp breath. What if they check up on her and find the room empty? Will they think that she’s run away? Would they call the police, or would they despair? She’s their only child, the only one able to provide for them in the future. She can’t die in this game; she has to make it back.

But how can she make it back if she can’t even escape from a simple room? The walls are somehow made of metal, the windows covered with some sort of paste-strengthened paper, and the sliding doors are locked, with no way to access the lock from inside. She’s stuck, a fly in a trap, waiting for death.

Then again, the information scroll she’d read before had said that levels weren’t too hard and that few people were expected to die. Plus, she has two allies, right? The more Mihyun thinks, the more she calms down. Right, it’s not over yet. It’s only been an hour, maybe; the day is long, and possibilities endless. Maybe something interesting will happen soon, and then she’ll be able to figure something out.

Having comforted herself, Mihyun lies down on the bed, sliding her fingers along the cool satin of the covers. She’d never been good at solving riddles, or walking through logic problems, or doing escape rooms. Stressful events with time constraints never sat well with her; if she was going to do something stressful, she’d better have enough time to calm down first.

Unfortunately, she doesn’t have no time to calm down because the chains on the door rattle. Mihyun bolts up, fear trickling cold down her spine, right as the doors slam open.

“Concubine Mimi,” a tall, bearded man in red silk robes announces. He’s wearing a hat with beads hanging down in front of his face, a detail that Mihyun recognizes from ancient dramas. Immediately, she kneels, almost slamming her face into the ground in her haste to not offend the emperor. “Rise.”

She rises, chancing a glance up. The emperor sits down at the low table, surrounded by two guards in blue robes. One of them looks vaguely familiar… No, Mihyun realizes with a jolt as one of the guards looks up at her. They both do.

They’re Jaehyun and Kun, from NCT.

_ NCT _ , her brain babbles, unable to stop the flow of information.  _ Neo Culture Technology, world-famous idol group formed by SM Entertainment in Korea, consisting of twenty-three members: Taeil, Johnny, Taeyong— _

“Do you know why you’ve been banished to the Cold Palace?” the emperor asks, breaking off her train of thought. Mihyun’s eyebrows furrow. The Cold Palace? The place where disgraced concubines go? The scroll she’d read at the beginning of the game suddenly makes a lot more sense now. But she can’t answer the emperor’s question; she  _ doesn’t _ know what she’s done wrong.

Her silence must annoy the emperor, because he clicks his tongue impatiently and gestures to Jaehyun. “Advisor Jay,” he says, and Jaehyun steps forward—it’s only now that Mihyun notices the faint blue glow surrounding him—opening a scroll.

“Concubine Mimi,” he reads, glancing at her pointedly. “Though it was your own bad luck that you were not able to produce a son for Our Majesty, it was uncalled for and unwarranted for you to steal a child from a poor family to claim as your own.” 

Wait, what? Mihyun’s eyes narrow; she would never do that! As if reading her thoughts, Jaehyun sends her a warning glance and continues. “You have thus been accused of wrongness of morality and breaking the peace of family. If you do not prove tonight that you were wrongfully accused, you shall go to trial tomorrow and punished accordingly.”

He shuts the scroll. “That is all. Advisor QianKun?”

A flush rises on Kun’s cheeks as he steps forward—no wonder; he must regret using his real name—handing a scroll to Mihyun. “You may write your defense on this scroll for the judge to read tomorrow. If you choose to leave your defense blank, then you will be indicted immediately.”

Something crinkles inside the scroll. Kun’s eyes narrow; he gives off the same blue glow as Jaehyun, and Mihyun knows that they are her two previously-unknown allies. She nods, hoping to convey both levels of understanding in that one small action.

When the emperor leaves, Jaehyun sends her one last look. It’s an odd one, a wide-eyed, hopeful, expecting one, that makes Mihyun’s heart beat faster in her chest and palms slick with a sheen of sweat. What the heck? She knows, deep in her heart, that it’s only because they’re allies, but some part of her wants to believe that Jaehyun was immediately struck by her blinding beauty.

Unfortunately, that’s only a fantasy, and the fact that two members of NCT are her allies does not change the fact that she is a wrongly-accused prisoner in this weird room in this weird world in this weird game. She has to do something.

The scroll! In the whole Jaehyun confusion, Mihyun had forgotten about the blank scroll that Kun had given her. Though it’s clear that she knows nothing and thus has nothing to say in defense of herself, it’s also clear that Kun had hidden a note inside. Mihyun unwraps the heavy cloth and sure enough, there’s a piece of delicate, beige-colored paper, words written on it not with thick brushstrokes but with thin ballpoint pen.

_ The game automatically translates anything you hear or read into your default system language! Your default system language is set to:  _ **_English_ ** _. _

_ Is this correct? _

Mihyun nearly curses out loud when Neo’s voice rings throughout the room. She’d forgotten that the AI would be present throughout the first world. “Yes, yes, English,” she mutters, shaking her head to clear her thoughts. “Thank you for that.”

_ To our ally: _

_ Our names are Kun and Jay, and our roles are the emperor’s personal advisors. Unfortunately, we don’t know much about your situation, only that you are accused of a terrible crime. However, being that we are close to the emperor and others, we might be able to find out some things. We’ll come back later to discuss with you about what to do. _

_ Keep safe. _

What the fuck? They don’t know anything either? The hope that Mihyun had allowed herself to feel crashes down, and she flops onto the bed with a loud sigh. Time to scour the room even more.

***

“Mihyun!” Jaehyun bursts in through the window with a loud whisper. Kun physically winces, trying to smooth the window paper back in place. “I’m being quiet!”

_ Sorry, _ the thought forms in Mihyun’s head.  _ Do I know you? _ Would that be rude? But it’s true that she doesn’t know him, even if it seems like he does. So she says it, looks Jung Jaehyun of NCT in the eyes and says, “Sorry, I don’t know you.”

Emotions flicker on Jaehyun’s face. Shock, betrayal, disbelief, panic. “N-no way,” he murmurs, almost to himself. “We’re best friends, Mimi, remember? University? We’re in the same major.”

“No?” He seems genuine, which makes Mihyun feel worse. “You’re NCT, you’re famous.”

“What’s NCT?” Jaehyun’s eyes flash and he seems to want to ask more, but Kun breaks in impatiently.

“Guys, I don’t care if you actually know each other or not, but can we leave it until later? We have to figure out how to escape together, otherwise it won’t matter who knows who because we’ll all be dead.”

He’s right. Mihyun clears her throat and reaches into her pouch, bringing up her inventory. “The cakes on the table are poisoned, and I got a poisoned handkerchief too. Oh, and some acupuncture needles.” She closes the inventory. “That’s it.”

Kun’s eyes light up. “That’s great! Did you know? Silver was used to define poison in the ancient times. Maybe they’ll come in handy at some point.”

“So we know that you were imprisoned for stealing a kid from another family,” Jaehyun adds, setting down the scroll he’d read earlier in the day. “The information that we were given implies that you were framed, but we don’t have any evidence to prove it.”

“I know.” Mihyun grabs the scroll to read it through. “I just, I can’t believe they made me a criminal. A child-trafficking criminal.”

It’s written right there in bold red ink, stamped and previously-sealed.  _ Concubine Mimi, child-stealer. _ Kun shrugs. “It is what it is. Do you have any evidence that can prove it’s not you?” he asks. “Because we can’t find any, and without evidence, you are going to die.”

“Kun!” Agitated, Jaehyun leaps up. He paces the room, grabbing his hair with his hands. “Don’t say that! She can’t die!”

Kun sighs, sitting down. “I’m sorry, I just don’t know what to do,” he admits, fingers clenching and unclenching. “I don’t want you to die either.”

Silence falls over the room. Jaehyun’s still pacing, muttering something to himself. It’s surreal to Mihyun, being so close to two people she’d always admired. Celebrities, in her world. 

Wait, that’s it. She clears her throat. “I know why you know me and I don’t know you.” Both Jaehyun and Kun look to her, and she shrugs. “I mean, it’s not very useful, and it won’t help me from getting killed, but I thought we should know. It’s the different worlds. Remember the message they showed us at the beginning of the game?”

Clearly, they do not. Mihyun’s about to explain when Jaehyun perks up. “Oh!” he exclaims, clapping his hands. “Ten dimensions! We’re from different worlds.”

Kun gets it now too. “So in Mihyun’s world, Jaehyun’s a celebrity, but in his world, you’re just normal people.”

“You’re a celebrity too, in my world,” Mihyun points out. “You’re both celebrities.”

“What? No way.” Kun shakes his head. “Wait, no, back up. What’s more important here? That or this? This. Your trial. Are you sure there’s nothing else you can find?”

Mihyun shrugs, smoothing out her skirts. The pink silk is cool against her skin, like it was this morning when she woke. “Nope,” she says with a shrug. “I can’t go out. I don’t know how you managed to get in through the window but it won’t tear for me, and the door’s chained shut too.”

“Try now.” Jaehyun sticks his hand through the window. “Come on, maybe we can find something if we go out together.”

Mihyun tries, but now there’s some invisible force preventing her hand from even touching the window paper. “I guess I’m stuck,” she says, and it’s now that the panic sets in. “Oh, god. I’m going to die.”

“You’re not.” For the first time, Jaehyun’s voice is hard. Kun and Mihyun both look at him in surprise. There’s a stony set to his jaw and he grips Mihyun’s shoulders, looking her in the eye. “I know you don’t know me and I guess I don’t know you either, but we’re friends. I’m going to—we’re going to save you. Count on it.”

“Yes, we’re friends now,” Kun agrees with a nod. “Don’t worry, Mihyun. We’ll find the evidence tonight. Right now, in fact. Don’t worry about it.”

But how can she not? Jaehyun and Kun climb out of the window and disappear into the darkness, and all she can think is  _ what if they don’t find it? What if I have to die here? I’ll never see my parents again I’ll never drink a soda again I’ll never even feel the sunshine again— _

Her parents must be worried sick. Does this game interfere with time? It’d be good if the game only took, like, a minute long in real life. Otherwise, what would her parents think if she just disappeared into thin air, or lied there comatose? She’d only been lying on her bed reading some trashy romance novel, and that doesn’t warrant any sort of weird situation.

She really hopes that her death is quick. Not that she doesn’t trust Jaehyun and Kun, but if they’ve already searched for evidence and found none, there’s not a large chance that they’ll find any more.

Wait, aren’t these games supposed to be easy? Mihyun straightens her back. “Yeah!” she can’t help saying out loud, mind whirring with excitement. “The message said that the game developers didn’t expect any deaths! The games are easy!”

If she’s trapped and there’s definitely no evidence in the room, then Jaehyun and Kun must be in a position that’s able to find evidence. She’s the princess in distress, the role that someone has to be in for the game to work, but that just means that her companions have to work a bit harder.

“Neo,” she says, swiping her arm up. A little blue robot materializes from thin air. “I have a question.”

“Yes, Mimi#544763,” it answers in a chirpy voice. “What is your question?”

“These games shouldn’t be too hard, right? Like, we shouldn’t  _ have _ to die for the game.”

Neo blinks a couple of times. “That is correct,” it says after a while. “These games are not so hard as to cause mass death. However, they are hard in subtle ways, and it depends on the players or player teams to find the way to win.”

“And after we win—” she breaks off, throat hoarse “—after we win, we get to go back to our own lives, right? Our real lives.”

“Correct.” The little robot bows. “There are five worlds, or five games, that each player must go through in order to win the entire game. These worlds are random for every player or player team, so there is no cheating to be done.”

Player teams? “What are player teams?” she presses. “Can I form a team with Jaehyun and Kun, or are we already a team?”

“You may add users Jay#674859 and QianKun#579544 as your friends. Then, in the Hub, which you will visit after you pass through this world, you may form a player team.”

The robot pauses. “Any player is able to form a player team, of which they will be the leader. Player teams are not limited by size but must contain at least two players. A player team will challenge a world together, and in the unlikely event that a player in a team dies, their username will disappear from the team roster. If the leader dies, team leadership passes to the second person on the team roster. You will be able to review these rules after you reach the Hub.”

Oh, so she found out about teams early. “Okay,” Mihyun says. She suddenly feels very tired. “Thank you, Neo.”

“No problem, Mimi#544763.”

***

The next morning, Mihyun is woken by rattling chains. Before she even fully comes to her senses, someone grabs her arms, yanks them behind her back, and ties her wrists. “What’s going on?” she yells, definitely awake now. “What’s happening?”

No one answers her. The guards marching her out into the chilly morning air are silent as statues, and Mihyun can read the atmosphere well enough to know to shut up. They march past the newly-green gardens—it must be spring right now—past the bubbling fish ponds, and into a large golden palace. 

The guards shove her down and Mihyun falls, hissing as her knees hit the carpeted floor. It’s red, and she can’t help but wonder if that was its original color or if it was stained with the blood of other players. She raises her head, looking straight at the emperor seated on his throne.

The bead curtain hanging down from his hat obscures his face, but if looks could kill, Mihyun feels like she would have died already. He must really hate her.

The panic returns. Mihyun tries to convince herself that it will be fine, that Jaehyun and Kun will stick up for her no matter what, but after a quick glance around, the two are nowhere to be found. Her heart almost stops beating before she finally spots them at the edge of her vision, standing in the shadows. 

Oh, thank god. They didn’t give up on her.

“Concubine Mimi.” The emperor’s voice booms across the palace without need for amplification. “Do you have any last defenses?”

What can she say? Is she sure that Jaehyun and Kun have the evidence? A bead of sweat trickles down her neck as she raises her chin. “Yes, Your Majesty,” she declares with confidence that she doesn’t feel. “Advisors Jay and Kun are able to prove my innocence.”

Gasps ripple through the crowd as Jaehyun and Kun step forward, sinking to their knees as well.

“Your Majesty,” Kun begins, pulling out a scroll from his sleeve. “We scoured the records last night and found this. Concubine Wanlin’s correspondence with her family. Shall we read it, or would you like to see for yourself?”

The emperor doesn’t get a chance to respond, because Jaehyun snatches the scroll and clears his throat. “Dearest cousin,” he reads loudly, “it is no bother to me to assist you with your plan. Soon, I hope Concubine Mimi will fall out of favor with His Majesty. Then you will be able to rise in rank and bring glory to our family. As for the child, you can either raise him as your own or send him back to us.”

Louder gasps ripple through the crowd. A scream as Concubine Wanlin, a beautiful girl, is thrown out of the crowd. “Your Majesty!” she gasps, scrambling to her knees to bow. “It is not true! They are trying to frame me!”

“Bring the scroll here!” the emperor demands. “Hold Concubine Wanlin!”

Mihyun stares at Jaehyun’s silk-clad back, willing him to turn around. It’d be rude to the emperor, but she wants some reassurance that things are going to plan. Instead, it’s Kun who turns slightly, giving her a look. She can’t decipher what it means, but it’s as good as she’s going to get for now, she supposes.

A slam echoes through the palace. The emperor stands up, robes billowing. “Search Concubine Wanlin’s quarters!” he commands. “Place her in the Cold Palace! I will deal with her myself. As for you—” he turns to Mihyun “—you, Advisor Jay, and Advisor QianKun can spend the rest of your life in the dungeons.”

“Wait, what?” Mihyun yells as guards drag her up again. “I’m free, though? I didn’t do it!”

The emperor slams his hand down on the table as he sits again. “You and the advisors searched the records without express permission. Searches must take place during the daytime, with permission from myself. Take them away!”

“Wait—what—” Jaehyun struggles against his bonds. “You didn’t give us time! You said she was going to be executed in the morning!”

“Jaehyun.” Kun’s quiet voice cuts through the noise. “It’s no use. It’s part of the game. There’s something else we have to do.”

Jaehyun curses, kicking at the guards marching him away. “Fuck the game! We did what we were supposed to do!”

“It’s fine,” Mihyun reassures him quickly. “At least we’ll be together, right? We can play whatever game they want us to play. Three brains are better than one.”

She sure hopes that’s true. From all the NCT videos she’s watched, neither Jaehyun nor Kun seem to be particularly dumb—well, not that any of the members are—but does that transfer over to the Jaehyun and Kun of other dimensions too?

It has to, otherwise they’ll rot in the dungeons.


	2. Two.

The dungeon floor is wet and slimy and Mihyun wishes she hadn’t gone with the flow. The dungeon door clanks shut and in the dim light of the torches on the walls, she can see the guards leaving. “Come back!” she screams, the shrill sound echoing off the stone walls. “We didn’t do anything wrong!”

“Who was the one who said to play the game?” Jaehyun mutters, and Mihyun whips around to glare at him. “I didn’t say anything.”

“Jung Jaehyun,” she growls. Kun shoves himself between them, clearly annoyed.

“Guys,” he says forcefully, “Mihyun is right. This is a game, and we’re supposed to win it. We’re stuck in one room, which means that we have to escape this one room, and we can work together to do it. We’re actually at an advantage, guys.”

He’s right. As if splashed with ice water, Mihyun calms down. “You’re right,” she says, lifting her skirts to avoid dirtying them. “So if we’re escaping from this dungeon, then we should find a key or a tunnel.”

Jaehyun rolls his eyes. “Where? There’s nothing here.”

That’s true too. Other than the moss growing on the floor, the cell is completely empty. Kun thinks for a moment, eyebrows furrowed, and then brightens up.

“This is a breakout room!” he exclaims. “You know, like you’re given clues and you have to escape?”

Mihyun knows what an escape room is, but the problem is, in real life, the players are given hints. Kun nods, but his eyes are searching the bare walls. “I know,” he says, “but this game wouldn’t leave us hintless. I think the biggest hint is that there’s nothing we can use.”

“What’s that mean?” Jaehyun seems to have given up being angry. “Are we supposed to be finding things on the walls?”

Suddenly, a thought occurs to Mihyun. “That’s exactly it!” She rushes to the closest wall, skirts forgotten, and almost slips. In a flash, Jaehyun’s there to catch her, even though she hadn’t fallen. “Check the walls,” she tells him, pressing her own hands to the stone. Seeing his eyebrows furrow, she explains, “It might be a mechanism like a lever or a secret compartment.”

On the other side of the room, Kun is doing the same thing. Jaehyun looks down at her, then puts a hand on the wall. His expression changes immediately. “Ew,” he says. Mihyun can’t help laughing at that. “Do you—” He breaks off, conflict in his eyes. “I mean, you can leave this to us, you know?”

“Why?” Strings of green slime cover Mihyun’s hands as she continues to feel along the walls. “We’re all stuck here anyway, plus I didn’t do anything last time.”

Jaehyun moves to give her space. In doing so, his hand hits a brick and it sinks into the wall with an audible click. He stills, and even Mihyun freezes in shock.

“What was that?” Kun rushes over carefully. “Jaehyun, move your hand.”

Jaehyun only looks at him. There might be a bit of fear in his eyes, but Mihyun’s not sure. “What if it’s a trap?”

“It won’t be,” Kun reassures. “If we could die now, why wouldn’t they just kill us earlier? Save the trouble, right?”

Mihyun wonders if Kun is the voice of reason in real life too. Kun of NCT certainly seems to be. After a bit of thought, Jaehyun moves away, and the brick face springs forward, revealing a secret compartment carved out of the stone.

“You were right!” Jaehyun cries out. He reaches into the compartment before Mihyun or Kun can stop him and takes out a small wooden box. It’s about the size of a book, and locked with a modern combination lock, the type sold for school lockers. “Hmm, we need a combination.”

The logical track to go down would be that each number of the combination is associated with each of them. Three people, three numbers. But what numbers could represent them?

Even Kun seems to be stuck. Jaehyun holds the lock up to his ear, turning the bolt slowly, but soon gives up. “Anyone know how to pick a lock?” he asks with a half-smile. “I’m only partly serious.”

“I can only pick tumbler-pin locks,” Kun sighs, but Jaehyun shoves the lock into his hands anyway. “I told you, I can’t do these.”

“You can still pick  _ some _ locks.” Mihyun stretches her back. She wants to sit down. “That’s better than me. And Jaehyun too, I guess.”

Kun rolls his eyes. “Zero to forty,” he says. “That’s the standard combination lock. Obviously, since combinations are made up of three numbers and there are three of us, we should have a number each. The order we can figure out later, but the most important thing right now is to find our numbers.”

Silence falls as everyone sinks into thought. Suddenly, Jaehyun groans. “They’re not on the walls, are they?” he pleads. “I don’t want to search four whole walls of slime.”

“Three,” Mihyun points out helpfully. “One wall is all metal bars.”

That would be the cell door. Jaehyun rolls his eyes. “Where’s  _ my _ Mihyun?” he mutters, crossing his arms. “I want my Mihyun.”

Kun snorts, then lowers his head. “Sorry,” he says, serious again. Mihyun narrows her eyes at Jaehyun. It’s not her fault that he’s being uncooperative, and it’s certainly not her fault that Jaehyun’s Mihyun is best-friend material and her Jaehyun is a celebrity.

“I think,” she says deliberately, turning to Kun, “that we should search the walls just in case the combination is actually written there. Don’t you think so?”

From his expression, Kun clearly does not want to think so. “Yes,” he says anyway, resigned. “I think it never hurts to be safe.”

“Kun!” Jaehyun whines. Kun shakes his head, rolling up his sleeves. “Kunnnn, you’re supposed to be my friend!”

“We just met today.” He turns away and carefully makes his way to a wall. “Come on, we can each search one wall.”

***

The wall search turns up nothing, leaving them up to their wrists in green slime. There’s an obvious scowl on Jaehyun’s face, and even Kun looks tired. Mihyun shrugs; it was the obvious route to take, and what if they had actually found useful information?

“Well, the walls are out.” Kun picks up the box again. It almost slips out of his hands. “Oops. Any other ideas?”

“I have one.” Jaehyun leans against the cell bars, the only thing that’s clean here. “Try our first initials.”

“K, J, and M? The alphabet only goes up to twenty-six, though.”

He gives her a baleful look. “That’s under forty, isn’t it?”

Kun rolls his eyes. “Okay, so those are which numbers again?”

J is 10. K is 11. M is 13. Kun holds the box carefully in his hands as he turns the lock. Three times to the right, twice to the left, once to the right. When he pulls, the lock clicks open, and Mihyun yells in excitement.

“Jaehyun, you’re a genius!” she exclaims. Jaehyun doesn’t respond, but he looks much less angry than before. “Open it, Kun!”

Inside the box lies a single tiny key. It’s so small that Mihyun hesitates to pick it up. Kun also only blinks. “Jaehyun,” he says, shoving the box into his arms, “it’s yours.”

Speechless, Jaehyun can only gape at the small key. “But,” he stammers, “it’s tiny? The cell door’s lock is fucking huge.”

“That means we obviously can’t leave through there.” Mihyun looks at Kun, who nods. “Since we searched all the walls, the only possible options are the floor or the ceiling.”

“Oh, hell no.” Jaehyun throws a disgusted glance at the ceiling. “I am not potentially killing myself to put my hands on  _ that _ .”

“Floor it is!” Kun declares, crouching down. “Oh, oh boy.”

The floor is even more disgusting than the walls. Icy water and strings of moss float over her hands. Mihyun squeezes her eyes shut, about to put her hands down, when a warm pair of hands encloses hers.

“You don’t have to.” Jaehyun looks about as delighted as Mihyun herself, but he gently pushes her away. “Really, we can do it.”

She can’t tell if he’s playing hero or if he thinks she’s not good enough. “I’ve done nothing,” she retorts. “You were the ones who saved me last time too. I can’t just, I don’t know, not do anything?”

Kun laughs, but Jaehyun only keeps searching. “Fine,” he finally says. “Get dirty, I don’t care.”

“Wait!” Before Mihyun can bend down again, Kun’s eyes widen. “I-I think I found something.”

It’s a large metal ring attached to the floor. “It’s a trapdoor, I think,” Mihyun supplies helpfully, even though that’s definitely what they’re all thinking. “We’ll probably all have to pull.”

“All of us,” Kun agrees. “If this thing is made of metal or stone, which it probably is, it has to be all of us.”

They stand in silence for a while, contemplating the handle. “But,” Jaehyun says, “how are we supposed to all grab it and pull the same way? Or is it supposed to be like tug-of-war, where it’s a person-train?”

Person-train? That’s a new one. Mihyun can’t hold in a laugh. Thankfully, Jaehyun doesn’t seem to notice.

“Let’s try all grabbing it first,” Kun suggests. “Here, Mihyun, you go to the middle. It’s easier.”

Once they’re all in place, they tug. The trapdoor doesn’t move. They tug again. The trapdoor doesn’t budge an inch. They tug again, putting all their strength into it. The trapdoor opens a crack, cold air streaming into the cell.

“Come on!” Kun’s voice is strained. “We can do it!”

At that exact moment, Mihyun loses her footing and falls with a splash. Jaehyun drops the trapdoor as well and it slams shut with a whoomph. “Mihyun! Are you okay?”

_ Uh, no, _ she wants to say.  _ I’m dripping and freezing and disgusting. _

“Yeah,” she says instead, shaking her arms slightly to get rid of as much moss as she can. “I’m not hurt or anything.”

“I guess it’s not supposed to be lifted like this?” Kun wonders out loud, but Jaehyun shakes his head. 

“No, it is, otherwise there’s nothing else. We’ve searched the entire cell. Come on, Kun, let’s do this.”

“No me?” Mihyun jokes, earning her two pointed looks. “Yeah, right, okay. Too weak.”

Without Mihyun, both Kun and Jaehyun are able to direct their force towards the middle. It takes a lot of work, but eventually, the trapdoor lifts up. Unable to not help, Mihyun rushes forward to help push the slab of metal up. The trapdoor soon clangs to the ground, revealing a stone staircase leading into darkness.

They stand at the top for a long time, the cold wind on their faces. No one wants to make the first move to step into the abyss. Finally, Jaehyun clears his throat.

“At least the steps are dry?”

“They sure are,” Mihyun follows. “What do we say, guys? Let’s go together?”

The stairs are wide enough for the three of them to walk side by side, though it looks like it’d be a tight fit. Kun swallows, visibly nervous. “Oh, god,” he says weakly. “I think I’m gonna pass out.”

“Kun, hold on.” Jaehyun reaches over Mihyun to give him a slap on the shoulder. “We’re  _ this _ close to winning this dumb game. You can do it, we’ll be with you. Come on.”

After closing his eyes and taking three deep breaths, Kun nods. “Come on,” he says, voice a whole octave higher than before. Holding back a laugh, Mihyun nods and they link arms. “I’m not scared I’m not scared I’m not scared I’m not!”

“Of course not.” Jaehyun’s tense; Mihyun can feel it. “What do you say we sing something? Aren’t we celebrities in Mihyun’s world?”

“Yeah.” Her voice comes out in a rasp. Mihyun swallows as they descend further. “Y-you’re in a group called NCT, and you’re both world-famous. Singers, that is, so you should both sing something.”

“I don’t know any songs!” Kun’s almost hyperventilating. “All I know are old Chinese songs!”

“Me too,” says Jaehyun on her other side. They step onto flat ground, and Mihyun almost stumbles. “I know old Korean songs from, like, the 90s.”

“That’s fine!” Mihyun’s legs feel weak. “Do either of you know Dynamite? Taio Cruz’s Dynamite? Baby you’re a fiiiiirework—wait, wrong song.”

The other two burst into laughter and immediately, the atmosphere feels lighter. “Are those American songs?” Kun asks. “I don’t know them.”

“I know Firework,” Jaehyun says. “They played it at parties.”

“Oh, right, college. Wait, wait, did you go to college in America?”

“Uh, yeah? We’re both international students?” He stops. “Oh, right. Wrong world.”

Kun laughs again. It’s more like a nervous giggle. The ground beneath their feet begins to slope up. “Oh my god, I think we’re going up! Guys, we’re almost there!”

“Keep talking, keep talking!” A draft blows behind Mihyun’s back and she shudders. “Wh-what’s your favorite song? Artist, anything, I don’t know. I love NCT, obviously.”

“I like The Flowers!” Kun blabbers. “They’re a rock band from China and they were the first underage rock band ever in China, and especially the first one to make it big. They had some pretty rough moments and now they’re disbanded, but the main vocalist, Da Zhang Wei, is still pretty popular as a celebrity and I like his voice. Good sense of humor too.”

“I like TVXQ,” Jaehyun continues. In front of them, there’s a faint white glow, and almost instinctively, all three speed up. “I’ve been following them since, like 2008, which was Mirotic, and I really like Yunho—we actually share a name—and I think he dances really well and Changmin’s high notes also kill me and we’re so close and aaaahhhhhhhh!”

They burst out into the light, and all Mihyun can register is that they’re back outside. “The sun!” she cries, collapsing on the ground. She hadn’t realized how much her legs were shaking. “I can, I can feel the sun!”

Kun’s not much better, tears sliding down his face, and Jaehyun’s crying too. “I thought, I thought we’d never make it out of there,” he sobs, pressing his forehead to the dusty ground. “I never knew how much I loved dirt.”

Dirt! For the first time, Mihyun also loves dirt passionately. It’s so much better than slime, and it can grow plants, which need the sun, and she loves the sun passionately also. The dark tunnel could not have been more than ten minutes long, but it felt like forever, her nerves hyper with fear and paranoia. That sort of fear is something that she’s fine with never experiencing again, thank you very much.

“Congratulations, Mimi#544763, Jay#674859, and QianKun#579544!” a familiar chirpy voice calls. Mihyun whips her head up to see Neo standing before them, blue face lit up in a smile. “You have successfully passed through the first world, Like Flower, Like Jade! Your rewards have been sent to your inventory.”

“We get rewards?” Jaehyun wipes his eyes with his miraculously-clean hands. Mihyun notices that he’s suddenly wearing jeans and a t-shirt and realizes that she, also, is wearing what she’d been wearing before coming to this game. That is, unicorn pajamas. “I have my clothes back!”

Kun, on the other hand, is wearing a very heavy winter coat, a scarf, and a hat. “What do we do now?” he asks, still sounding sort of nasal. “We can’t stay here, obviously.”

“Of course not.” Neo waves a hand, and the landscape dissolves—it’s only now that Mihyun notices the golden palace beyond a high wall—into blue and white confetti. “We will now head to the Hub, the place where all players gather between worlds. There, you will be able to buy clothes, equipment, food, and more! You’ll also be able to meet other players and form teams with them, if you so wish.”

“Teams?” Jaehyun glances at Mihyun. The confetti dissipates, leaving them standing in the middle of a bustling street. “Oh, shit.”

‘Oh, shit’ indeed. The Hub looks exactly like a normal city, complete with apartment buildings, restaurants, cars, and even landscaping. The only thing missing is the sky, replaced instead by a deep purple matrix.

“All players are given apartments to stay in, free of charge,” Neo explains. “You can check into any apartment building you want, but be careful! Once you check in, that’s your apartment for the rest of your time here in MultiExperience.”

“Teams,” Jaehyun urges. “How do we form teams?”

“To form a team, you must first add a player as a friend.” Neo pulls up Jaehyun’s profile, where there’s a shiny new tab labelled ‘Friends.’ “Afterwards, you may choose to create a team or join a team. You will, by default, be the leader of the team that you create. Teams are not limited in size but must contain at least two people.”

“Team,” Jaehyun decides, turning to Mihyun and Kun, who’s not paying much attention. “Come on, guys, let’s make a team.”

“I…” Kun turns, an apology already on his lips. “I’m sorry, guys, I just saw my friend. Here, I’ll add you both as friends, but I can’t form a team with you, I’m sorry.” He quickly pulls up his Friends tab and, using the ‘Proximity’ feature, adds Jaehyun and Mihyun as friends. “Sorry,” he says again as he hurries away.

It happens so quickly as Mihyun can barely process it. “Well,” she finally says. “You and me?”

Deep purple reflects off Jaehyun’s face as he adds her as a friend. “You and me,” he agrees. “Let’s do this.”

***

None of the players on the streets take notice of them, though some of them smile and nod. That’s when Mihyun remembers that she’s still wearing pajamas. “Neo,” she whispers, “where can I buy clothes?”

“Clothing stores are available all across the city,” the robot chirps, waving an arm at a nearby store. “You may buy clothing with coins, which you can earn from passing through worlds or working.”

Working? They can work in this game? That brings up a whole different category of questions. Where can they work? How long can they live here? Is everything the same as in real life?

Neo whirrs. She can almost see the gears in its head spinning. “You can rest for up to seven days in the Hub before moving onto the next world. During that time, if you would like to earn more credits, you may apply for work at any store. Though the Hub is not entirely a human city, the structure is indeed based on human architecture.”

Jaehyun opens his mouth again, but Neo cuts him off. “Before I leave, there are some things you must pay attention to.” A blue screen pops up in front of Mihyun. “This is your profile. You may notice that your stats have improved! Every time you successfully pass through a world, your stats will improve. You may also choose to raise them in the Hub with coins.”

“Oh, right,” Mihyun interrupts. “What about that apple you gave us? Can we buy other props too?”

“Of course! You may buy equipment, clothing, or anything else you need, as long as you can afford it.” Neo blinks and begins to fade away. “From now on, you will be on your own. There are plenty of player organizations here in the Hub if you need help. Good luck, Mimi#544763 and Jay#674859. I hope I get to see you again.”

With that, Mihyun and Jaehyun are left alone in the middle of the bustling street. Jaehyun turns. “Let’s make a team,” he says, hand already hovering over the ‘Friends’ tab. Mihyun wants to slap his hand away, but that would be rude.

“Can we get clothes first?” 

“Accept my team invitation first.”

_ Jay#674859 is inviting you to the team ‘lets get this shizzz!!!’ _

Is he serious? Mihyun gives him a look but accepts the invitation anyway. “Now can we go get some clothes?”

The closest clothing store seems to be specialized. All of the outfits hanging on the racks are sleek and high-tech. Mihyun feels dizzy just looking at them. “Are we supposed to have, like, classes or something?”

Jaehyun picks up the price tag for one glowing bodysuit. “2000 gold?” he exclaims. “No, Mimi, we’re yeeting. I only have 200 gold.” He grabs her arm and pulls her back onto the street. “We started out with 100, I remember, so I guess we earned 100 from the game.”

The next clothing store they enter is much friendlier on their eyes and wallets. Mihyun quickly buys a full set of casual clothes: jeans, a long-sleeved t-shirt, a hoodie, and socks and sneakers. Jaehyun buys a zip-up jacket as well.

“So 100 silver makes 1 gold,” Jaehyun says, counting his change. “I guess that means 100 bronze is 1 silver, if we’re going by the same conversion.”

It’s a classic game-currency conversion. Mihyun’s not too worried about that; instead, she looks around at the high-rise buildings and the purple sky. “Should we check into an apartment first? Or get something to eat?”

Jaehyun throws his money into his pouch and looks around as well. “Are you hungry? I’m not very. I want to explore some, but—” He cuts off abruptly, looking at her with wide eyes. “Wait, did you say check into an apartment?”

“Yes?” Mihyun can’t tell what’s wrong with that. “Is there a problem?”

“D-d-did you just?” Jaehyun’s face has turned bright red, and Mihyun can practically see the steam coming out of his ears. “Did you just imply that we’d be living together?”

It hadn’t been her intention, but now that she thinks about what she’d said, it does seem like she was saying they should live together. “No!” she says, trying not to panic. “I wasn’t saying that!”

But Jaehyun’s not listening. His face is still red, but he’s talking very quickly to himself. “I mean, that wouldn’t be—I mean like, it would be more convenient since we’re a team but what if they only have one-bedroom apartments, right? What if we end up getting more team members and they misunderstand something? What if they want to move in too? No, no, there’s too much to risk here, but it really is inconvenient to keep knocking on doors and all—”

He breaks off again, though this time, he doesn’t look her in the eye. “I want to go find one of those player organizations. Maybe they can tell us something about this place, or about the other games. I mean, we only have a week, so…”

Mihyun agrees quickly. They can worry about housing arrangements later. The most important thing right now is finding out more about this game. “Maybe we can go downtown.”

Downtown is the right place. It’s bustling with people, neon lights and flashing signs everywhere, almost like a night market, if night and day existed here. Mihyun adds that to her mental list of questions: how do we tell time?

“Hey, pretty lady, wanna join our team?”

“Newbie? Are you a newbie? We can help you!”

“North American players over here! Biggest organization in-game!”

Immediately, they’re bombarded with advertisers. Jaehyun grabs onto Mihyun’s arm, face blank, and wades them through the crowd. Lights pass in a blur, and for some reason, Mihyun wants to smile. There’s really someone out here looking out for her, even if he might just be looking out for the Mihyun he knows. Still, it’s comforting, to have someone back her up in this strange place.

He drags her to a small, isolated booth. The attending player perks up at the sight of them. “Hello!” she says excitedly, grabbing two pamphlets. “What can I do for y’all today?”

“We want to know more about this world.” Jaehyun slams his hands down on the plastic table, making it shake. “Everything we can.”

“What are you so aggressive for?” Mihyun pokes him. “Calm down.”

He glares at her but takes a deep breath. The booth attendant—her nametag says Karina—bites back a smile and hands them a stack of pamphlets. “Here,” she says, “these all contain information that my organization has gathered. You don’t have to join if you don’t want to!” she adds hastily, seeing Jaehyun’s expression darken. “You can just take them, or if you’d like, I can also answer some questions.”

“I have a question.” Mihyun raises her hand involuntarily. “How do we tell time in this place?”

Karina smiles, leaning back in her chair. “It’s actually nighttime right now, which is why the sky is purple. During the day, it’s light blue, like the typical sci-fi blue. There are also clocks around, and you can buy watches too.”

“What about the worlds? Are any of them particularly dangerous? Because, like, our welcome message said that people aren’t expected to die.”

“Hmm.” Karina taps her fingers on the table. “Well, everyone gets a different world each time, but from what I understand, none of them are particularly hard. We’ve lost people before, but not many.”

Mihyun glances at Jaehyun, and he looks back. It’s obvious that he mirrors her feelings: people  _ do _ die in this game, and that is not reassuring.

“What about equipment?” Jaehyun asks. “Do we need them, or are they just there to help?”

“Oh, you don’t need anything extra.” Karina brings out a small dagger to show them. “Sometimes they make life easier, like this. I would have died in my second world if I didn’t have a weapon. But in general, the game will give you everything you need for a world. Same with clothing.” She nods at their outfits. “You could technically go the entire time wearing whatever you were wearing when you first came since the game dresses you, but sometimes it’s nice to have a change of clothes.”

Jaehyun gestures to Mihyun. “Your turn.”

So she goes. “If we make it to the end, does everything go back to normal? There’s no, like, catch? We’re not going to lose a limb or our memories or anything?”

Karina shrugs. “Girl, who knows? Some of our members have gone onto the fifth world, but who knows if they actually make it out? And if they do, it’s not like we know what happens to them anyway.”

It’s Jaehyun’s turn. He glances at Mihyun, mouthing ‘two more questions.’ “So how did we get here, anyway?”

That’s a question that Mihyun’s been thinking about too. “Who knows?” Karina rolls her eyes. “Y’all are asking all the existential questions. These are things that no one really knows. Maybe we’ll know if we get out, though.”

It falls to Mihyun to ask the last question. She thinks for a while, then decides to break the delicate ice. “If we’re one team, can we live in one apartment, or do we have to get two?”

Karina bursts out laughing, almost falling out of her chair. “Sorry, sorry!” she wheezes, climbing back up. “It’s just that, people rarely ask us that in person! Anyway, yes, you can. The leader can ask for a multi-person apartment that will have more than one room, and if more members join, the apartment will automatically add more rooms.”

After they leave, Jaehyun sighs in relief. “Well, I guess that solves that problem,” he says, face red. He still doesn’t look at her. “We can have a team house.”

“Sure.” It’s not like they’re going to sleep in the same room, so Mihyun isn’t opposed to the idea. “I’m hungry, though. Should we make food or eat out?”

“I want sushi.”

That settles that, then.

***

_ Welcome to MultiExperience! You must be confused, so let The Best Organization explain some things for you… _

_ …oh, and a suggestion: use a fake name. No, it doesn’t really matter in the grand scheme of things, but who knows? Maybe it’ll help you protect your personal privacy. This  _ is _ a game, after all… _

_ …one more thing you should know: the game genderbends players when there’s enough female players. Generally, the game likes to keep the female:male ratio at about 1:4 or more. Since random players are randomly chosen for each world, there is a large chance that players will land in a world with few or no female players… _

“You’re telling me I might end up being a girl???”

Mihyun rolls her eyes. “Don’t be so dramatic, it’s not as bad as you think. It says here that we can enhance a stat for the low, low price of free, or enhance all of them for a fee.”

“How much?” Jaehyun munches on some cereal that they got last night. “If it’s not too much, we might as well. I want a weapon, too.”

Mihyun also wants a weapon. The only thing she has right now that might even count are those acupuncture needles. Actually, she’d expected some sort of weapon from the game rewards, but it seems like all she got was an HP boost and 100 gold.  _ Here’s to hoping the next world gives better rewards _ .

Turns out, it costs about 500 gold to enhance all stats at once. Mihyun exchanges a glance of disbelief with Jaehyun. “Just, just intelligence, then.”

“Intelligence?” The old shopkeeper, an NPC, looks Mihyun over from head to toe. “I’m not insinuating anything, girlie, but I think you’d do better with dex.”

Is he calling her dumb? Before Mihyun can fire back, Jaehyun agrees. “Intelligence doesn’t really do much in games. I’m guessing most of the games are going to have to do with physical stuff, so dex is a good choice. I’m upping strength, so you probably won’t need to. If you really want to go with something more ‘on the side,’ I’d say do perception.”

The NPC’s eyes widen, but he nods seriously. “This young man is absolutely correct! Couldn’t have said it better myself.”

What Jaehyun says does make sense; if the rest of the games are as easy as the first one, then Mihyun doesn’t need to up her intelligence at all. On the other hand, the three of them—two of them, really—could barely lift the metal trapdoor. Since Jaehyun’s got strength down, then it would be in Mihyun’s best interests to enhance dexterity, which would help her perform actions with more precision, or perception, which would help her notice details faster. As long as the other games don’t involve heavy evidence-searching, then dexterity would likely help Mihyun the most.

“I’ll go with dex,” she decides. The NPC hands her a glowing blue potion. It smells and tastes like blueberries. Upon drinking it, Mihyun’s dexterity index changes, going from 200 to 500. Jaehyun’s strength also increases upon drinking a golden potion, and they leave the shop with renewed vigor.

“You should get a weapon too,” Jaehyun reminds her, checking his money. “I think I want a sword. It looks cool.”

“Do you even know how to use a sword?” Mihyun retorts. “I’ll see when we get there. A sword would be cool, but I doubt I’d be able to use it right.”

“Well, no, I don’t know, maybe the knowledge of how to use a sword is infused into us. Otherwise we wouldn’t be able to use most of the weapons that appear in a traditional video game.”

The weapons shop they’ve come to is an odd mix of medieval weapons and high-tech gear. There are guns, swords, and weird contraptions all on one shelf. The shopkeeper NPC hurries over to greet them. “Welcome to Weapons Galore! What can I help you with today?”

“We’re looking for weapons…”

While Jaehyun explains to the NPC, Mihyun wanders around, poring over the different types of weapons. There are swords from all over the world, some sort of laser-shooting device, and a multitude of guns.

“One thing to note,” the NPC says suddenly, “is that your weapons may not be allowed in certain worlds. If, say, a gun will clash with the history of said world, you will not be able to use it.”

_ Well, what’s the point then? _ is what Mihyun wants to say, but having a weapon and not being able to use it is still better than not having one but needing it.

“Do we have to train to be able to use them?” she asks. Realistically, she wouldn’t be able to use any of these weapons, but if the game has a built-in ability to use weapons, then the only problem would be the price of the weapon.

Life, of course, usually does not work out perfectly. “Yes, of course,” the NPC answers. “We offer classes for a fee, or you can train elsewhere.”

That’s no fun. Mihyun chooses a dagger like the one Karina had, with a sturdy grip and a holographic blade.

“Beautiful choice,” the NPC comments as they pay. “Please come again!”

As soon as they step out of the store, Jaehyun’s stomach growls. “I want ramen,” he announces without missing a beat. “The legit kind, not the cup kind.”

“Can you even find cup noodles here?” Now that he’s mentioned it, she’s sort of hungry too. It’s noon, after all. “I want food too.”

From last night and this morning, they’ve found out that food tastes the same as it did in the real world. In some ways, it might taste even better because they can physically feel their HP and stamina increase. It feels like a battery charging up, even though Mihyun’s never been a battery before. Well, she is one now, so that argument is invalid.

The ramen is excellent. It’s a small hole-in-the-wall place that they found through one of the newbie pamphlets. The details in this game are so immaculate, Mihyun suddenly thinks, that if they were allowed to stay indefinitely, she’s not sure she’d go back to real life.

The thought sends shivers down her spine, and she stuffs a mouthful of ramen down her throat. No, no, her parents are still waiting for her. She still has to finish school and live a good life of her own. 

“Are we going to do the second world early or not?” she says once they’re done. The logical option is to wait the whole week and train, but it might be worth it to enter the world early. They’ll be less prepared, but as long as they don’t die, it would save a lot of time, and besides, the game wouldn’t let them die this early. Hopefully.

“Aren’t you tired?” Jaehyun asks, glancing at the deep purple sky with a sigh. “Plus, we have to train some.”

“With who?” Mihyun doesn’t particularly want to go back to the night market. “If we can pick up a few teammates in the second world, they could teach us too.”

On the other hand, if the second world isn’t as easy as the first one, or if no one wants to work with them, the situation would not be good. Losing patience, Jaehyun rolls his eyes.

“We have money,” he says, bringing up his inventory. “Between us, we have a lot of it. It wouldn’t hurt to train a bit first.”

“Okay, fine.” Mihyun gives in, knowing that he’s right. “I guess we’ll challenge the second world at the end of the week, then.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter was somewhat clunky because worldbuilding is one of my worst skills yeet

**Author's Note:**

> if you like my writing pls consider [buying me a kofi](https://ko-fi.com/finally_home)!


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